Free Guided Tours in Sydney

Visiting Sydney can be expensive but being on a budget does not mean you have to miss out the best things in Sydney. These free guided tours will help your money go a little bit further.

Every traveller knows that at some point on your holiday the money starts to run out. Finding free things to see and do on your trip is a bonus because it means you can save your $$$ for the really special things a city has on offer, like a Sydney Harbour Bridge climb or watching a performance at the Opera House.

Book a Personal Tour with a Sydney Greeter

A few years ago I was one of the volunteers who established Sydney Greeters. We are part of the Global Greeter Network, a group of locals around the world who love their hometowns so much that they offer free one on one tours of the city to visitors. These tours are called greets and are available seven days a week.

Exploring the city with some French guests

How do greeters work?

When you submit your booking, it will be shown to volunteers who are available at the time of your request. Once someone accepts it, they will contact you directly to introduce themselves and propose an outing.

While there are many volunteers, it is not always possible to find a greeter for every guest, so it is important to give a few options for your availability. It’s best to book in advance – at least 2-3 weeks is best.

What happens on a greet?

Usually, a greet lasts about 3-4 hours although they can be longer. If you have a specific amount of time available let your greeter know so they can plan around your schedule. Your greeter will meet you at your accommodation or another central location, and you will explore part of the city together chatting and learning more about each other along the way. A greeter is not a tour guide, they know a lot about their city, but they are not trained or registered. Think of a greet more like two new friends meeting up. While the greet is free, it is nice to offer to shout your greeter a drink or something to eat if you stop along the way as a way of thanks.

Check out the Facebook page to get an idea of what these greets are like.

Join a free tour at the Art Gallery of NSW

Learn more about Australian art on a short tour

If you are an art lover, you will love the range of free tours offered by gallery guides and volunteers at the NSW Art Gallery. One of the areas you don’t want to miss is the tour of the Yiribana Gallery of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art. These tours are offered at 1 pm every day.

Along with the general tours offered twice a day, there are weekly tours in Japanese, Mandarin and Cantonese. Once a month Auslan signed tours are available. Visit the Art Gallery website for times and details.

Try a Free Walking Tour

Sydney’s free walking tours cover the main sites

Like many cities around the world, Sydney has a couple of free walking tour companies. I’m Free walking tours offer tours three tours a week, two general tours each day at 10.30 and 2.30 and a tour of the Rocks at 6 pm. A second company Free Tours Sydney has a 10.30am walking tour and also a daily bus tour. Like all free tours these guides are not paid and work for tips, commonly people tip about $10 a head on these walks but tip what you can afford.

Tour Government House

Government House tours are great for history or design lovers

Visit the beautifully decorated house and gardens of the Governor General. 45-minute tours run on most Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays between 10.30am and 3 pm. The house is occasionally closed for official functions. You can collect your tickets for the free guided tours tickets from the Gatehouse. You can walk through the gardens during the week if you don’t happen to be here on the weekend.

For security reasons you will need to show a photo ID when you collect your free tickets from the Gatehouse. Check the website for further details.

Tour the Royal Botanic Gardens

If you miss the tour times then drop by the visitors’ centre for a free map

Free guided tours of the Botanic Gardens are offered twice a day. The morning tour is 1.5 hours long and runs year round. The 1 pm afternoon tour lasts 1 hour and is offered between March and November only. You will learn about the history of the colony, the garden and more. I really enjoy these tours and they are a lovely way to see the best part of the garden quickly.

All tours and walks depart from Information Booth outside the Garden Shop at the Palm Grove Centre.

Have you tried any of these tours? Do you know of any I have missed? Please let me know 🙂

Need help planning your trip to Sydney? Join our Sydney Expert Facebook Group where you can ask questions, stay up to date with what’s happening in Sydney and meet a bunch of friendly locals just waiting to share their advice!

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